616 - Exploring the relationship between Physical Activity (PA) and depression in women using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2017-2018 dataset.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between PA and depression in women using data from the NHANES 2017-2018, addressing gaps in understanding the impact of PA intensity and specific lifestyle factors on women with depression.

Design: This exploratory, observational, cross-sectional study included female participants aged 20 and older from the NHANES 2017-2018 survey. Depression symptoms were assessed using the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and PA was categorized into moderate- and vigorous activities. Logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between PA and depression, controlling for potential confounders, including age, ethnicity, marital status, education, poverty ratio, lifestyle factors, and comorbidities.

Results: Overall, 10.45% of participants reported depressive symptoms. Moderate PA was associated with a 35% lower odds of depression (OR=0.65, 95% CI: 0.47–0.91, p=0.009). Vigorous PA showed a non-significant trend toward reduced depression odds (OR=0.76, 95% CI: 0.49–1.19, p=0.243), which became significant in sensitivity analyses. High sugar intake was linked to higher depression risk (OR=1.97, 95% CI: 1.24–3.13), while fiber intake was protective. Women with arthritis had 63% higher odds of depression (OR=1.63, 95% CI: 1.17–2.27, p=0.003), and those with chronic bronchitis had more than double the odds (OR=2.08, 95% CI: 1.38–3.12, p< 0.001).

Conclusions: Our findings indicate that moderate PA significantly reduces the odds of depression in women, supporting the results of previous research. The lack of significant effect of vigorous exercise may be due to colliding variables. In addition, lifestyle factors such as sugar and fiber intake may play a role in depression severity. However, the cross-sectional design limits the ability to establish causality, and self-reported data may introduce inaccuracies. This study fills critical gaps in the literature by focusing on the specific effects of different PA intensities on depression in women. Future longitudinal studies are needed to clarify these relationships and mechanisms.